Tonight, Kathleen Peters qualified for Florida’s 13th congressional district, setting the stage for a divisive and costly Republican primary between Peters and David Jolly.

“The Republican primary in Florida’s 13th congressional district is an expensive and strategic nightmare for Republicans, as both David Jolly and Kathleen Peters will have to appeal to the farthest right-wing elements of their party,” said David Bergstein of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Jolly and Peters will spend the next several months locked in a brutal, intra-party fight that will divide Republicans against each other, drain both candidates of resources, and force Jolly and Peters to align themselves with the same reckless, irresponsible fringe of their party that was responsible for the shutdown of our nation’s government.”